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Inventar N;PETERS. PHOTOvLITHOGRAPnER, WASHINGTON, u. c.

N'PETERS, PHDTOALITHDGRAPNER. WASHINGTON. D C

'UNITED srnrus PATENT oriucn.

PIERRE E. LADRANGE, OF VIGNORY, FRANCE.

KNITTING-LOOM.

Speccation of Letters Patent No. 3,798, dated October 16, 1844.

thereof in conjunction with suitable mecha-I nism as hereafter describedfor producing loops or meshes which being continued form the knittedwork or fabric and in order that the inventionmay be perfectlyunderstood, I have sho-wn in the-accompanying drawings various views ofthe machine and some of its parts detached in which its construction andoperation is distinctly shown.

In Figure l, is `a side elevation of the whole machine complete, andFig. 2 is a vertical sectie-n taken through the middle of the same. Fig.3 represents a plan or hori- Zontal view ofuFig. l and Fig. 4 is ahorizontal section 3or `sectional plan taken through the line A B ofFigs. land 2.

The machine which `is of a circular form is suspended from theroof orfrom astrong beam by means of the vertical shaft or circle a a and iscomposedprincipally of the four following parts to which the minorportions of the machine are connected. These four principal partsconsist of four plates ZJ c Z and e seen best in the sectional view Fig.2. The first plate Z) b is firmly secured to the vertical shaft o a inany convenient manner zand is intended to support various stationaryparts of the apparatus that act upon the needles and jacks `orsinkers aswill be hereafter described, and is therefore denominated the supportplate. The second plate c c is called the needle plate because theneedles are ranged radially around its circumference as seen in thesectional plan view Fig. 4 and also in the detached figures. This `plateis mounted loosely on the vertical shaft a a and revolves freely aroundit and is connected with the third plate d Z by means of the bolts andnuts f f in Fig. 2. This plate (l Z which is made in the form of a broadring is furnished at or near its periphery with long slits or openings(see detached view Fig. 5) which receive the acks or sinkers andmaintain them in a perpendicular position. From the `circumstance ofthis `plate being thus perforated with -long slits or openings it iscalled the comb plate.7

` The fourth plate is shown at e e andis firmly iiXed to the verticalshaft a by screws or otherwise but is capable of being raised up anddown and its height thereby regulated (when` required) by means of thescrew boX g below as seen in Figs. l and 2 and the helical spring seenin Fig. 2 the position of `the railway plate requiring adjustment`according to the ineness and coarseness of the thread and theelasticity` which the knitted fabric is to possess.

The plate e e is called the railway plate because an undulating rib orrail which is formed on its `upper surface supports the n lower endsofthe jacks `or `sinkers L hand by `means of the undulations formedthereon which in the machine as represented are four in number, theaction of the sinkers as seen in Fig. l and Fig. 6 is regulated.

From the foregoing it will be understood f that the top and bottom plateb and e or as they maybe called the support plate and railway plate are`stationary being fixed to the `verticalshaft a a as before stated, andthat the needle plate c and comb plate d which are connected together bythe bolts f f revolve freely around the shaft a a. Rotary motion iscommunicated to them by means of the bevel pinion z' z' on the cranksshafts, which pinion gears into a circular bevel wheel 7' j attached tothe upper face o-f the needle plate c c as seen n Figs. 2 and 4.

As these plates revolve and carry around with them the needles le la andsinkers la, L these latter are made to fall andV rise in theperforations of the comb plate and between the needlesof the needleplate according to the undulations formed on the upper surface of therailway plate, but asthese sinkers might not always descend by their ownweight at the proper time they are ,made to do soby coming into contactwith and passing under the inclined end of the metal l piece Z Z seeFigs. `1,2 and 6. When the sinkers have passed down as shown in Fig. 6)the inclined plane of the railway plate they are kept down by the anglepiece e1 Figs. l and 7 which lcatches on a ledge on the front part ofthe sinker as seen in Fig. 7 The requisite outward motion of the sinkersbetween theneedles to form they loop is effected by the cam pieces m mand n fn,

Fig. 4 which are supported from the plate Y) above as seen in otherfigures. When the sinkers have .passed in front of these cams they areforced back into their original positions by thehelical springs Vo asseen in Figs. 1, 2 and 6 which surrounds them and also by the pressingpieces p andv p* as seen in Figs. 4L, 5 and 6. The cam pieces a fn, aremounted on centers at 9 Figs.

3 and 4: and the distance that the sinkers are forced out by them isregulated by means of the screw i" which passes through a block on thesame and abuts against a stationary piece s seen best in Figs. 3 and 4L.

The motions of the sinkers it therefore appears are then regulated asfollows: the upward and downward or vertical motion in the comb plate bythe undulations on the railway plate, and the outward motions betweenthe needles of the needle plate by the cams m and n the backward motionby the spring 0 and pressing pieces 79 and 79:11 The threads of whichthere are four in this machine to form the work enter the trumpets t tFigs. 2 and l and are conducted by them under the front notches it* h*of the sinkers L 7i. h Fig. 7 and laid along the needles as seen in Fig.4. The front notch of. the

sinkers having taken hold of the thread during the descent of the sinkerbetweenV the needles down the inclined plane in the railway plate a loophanging do-wn between the needles is formed and at the same time thesinker is pressed forward between the needles by coming into contactwith the cam m and thereby the loop is carried under the beak or beardof the needles as shown at Fig. 7. It will be observed in Fig. 6 thatafter the sinkers have descended the inclined plane of the railway asalready described and before they begin to ascend the opposite inclineas hereafter described they pass along a horizontal portion which isrepresented in the drawing Fig. 6 as capable of being adjusted by ascrew this however is not essential to the machine the adjustment of thesinkers as to the height of the machine is accurately constructed beingmade by the screw box a, as above described.

Vhen the lower end of the sinker comes into contact with the oppositeincline see Figs. 1 and 6 it is raised and is also pressed back by thepressing piece 79* which forces back the work and the sinker into therecess between the two cams m and a which is shown by dots in Fig. 5.The effect of this will be that as the sinker L passes up the inclinedplane on the railway plate the notch of the sinker will be raised out ofthe loop and as the sinker is pressed back by the piece 7)* the point 1Fig. 7 catches hold of the work and draws it back from under and beyondthe beak or beard of the needle which is then'closed by coming under therevolving presser plate or roller u as seen in Fig. 11. Then the sinkerin continuing its progress is brought against the cam n 'n whichgradually forces it outward and by the projecting shape of its breastpushes the work over the beard of the needle which has been closed forthis purpose by the presser plate u and ultimately throwsk the loop ofthe work already made over the end of the needle and thereby over theloop which has just been made as seen in Fig. '12 and s Fig. 5 and whichloop remains at the end of the needle until ano-ther loop is made. bythe neXt two needles. When the work is thrown over it is pressed back bythe notched wheel fw and the sinkers are brought into their originalposition by the springso already mentioned.

The construction of the needles and the manner of fixing and securingthem in the 'needle plate so that they can be changed or remo-ved atpleasure is distinctly shown at Figs. 8, 9 and 1,0. The inner end of theneedles is bent downl and enters a circular groove made by screwing abrass ring yinto the needle plate near its periphery. The shafts of theneedles lie radially around the needle plate in grooves or notches madeon the upper side of the brassrring 1/ as seen 1n Fig. S and the needlesare firmly secured in their pro-per places by means of the sector pieces.e which are screwed lightly down to the` needle plate. A ringv ofleather felt pasteboard or other suitable substance is placed betweenthe sector pieces e and the needles and thereby holds the needles morefirmly.

Havingvnow described the invention and the manner of carrying theV sameinto effect it is scarcely necessary to point out to any one acquaintedwith the construction of machines that the form and construction of thismachine admits of considerable varia tion and many of the operations maybe performed by other mechanical devices. I therefore do not confinemyself to the precise arrangements and construction of parts hereinshown nor do I claim the exclusive use of the several parts except ashereinafter mentioned unless the said several parts be used in theconstruction and working of a machine as hereinbefore described forproducing knitted work or fabrics. But Y I do claim-d 1. Arranging thehook billed needles, such as are used in the formation of stocking netand all other fabrics netted radially aroundV a circular plate, or disk,or ring as herein described.

2. I claim the sinkers in combination with the comb plate provided withradial slots through which the sinkers pass, and by which they areguided, as herein described.

3. I claim the disk in ,combinationV with the needles; for closing thebeaks of the needles preparatory to casting off the old loops over thepoints of the needles as described.

4. I claim the arrangement of the cam 6. I also claim the combinationtogether 10 pieces m m and n n to throw out the sinkers, of all theelements enumerated in the forer and in combination with these I claimthe going claims whereby I am enabled to knit pressing pieces andhelical springs for forccontinuously around a circle as described. 5inor back the sinlers as herein described.

aF5. I claim the method of Working the P' E' LADRANGE' [L S'] sinkers upand down in the circle by means In presence ofof the undulating' rib orrail in combination S. VIERARD, with the sinkers. C. BAL.

